Math:
The 7th graders jumped into their geometry unit this week. Monday, they had a lesson over complementary angles and supplementary angles, and learned the interior angles of a triangle have a sum of 180 degrees. That independent practice extended into Tuesday where they also practiced measuring and drawing angles with a protractor. On Wednesday we read Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi to learn pi is equal to the circumference divided by the diameter. We then used the number pi to calculate the circumference of circles. Thursday the completed a maze to practice finding circumference and then started an art project where they drew a circle only using straight lines.
The 8th graders also had a lesson over interior angles of triangles, but their problems involved solving equations with variables on both sides. They then had a lesson proving the sum of the two remote interior angles of a triangle equal the exterior angle. They practiced both lessons by completing a color and solve and a domino train activity.
The Algebra students started their exponents unit. They first reviewed combining like terms, then learned the product, power, and quotient rules. They still have the negative exponent and zero exponent rules to go. Ask your students why you add exponents when you multiply monomials.
Humanities:
Students launched into an examination of the first world war by kicking off their new novel Warhorse. We began the week with analysis of what Patriotism felt like in the pre-war era. We heard songs like “Over There” to probe the meaning of the message as it related to supporting the war effort. An interesting conversation about how patriotism is applied to different eras of history finished up with reading poems from the start of the war era. Students examined these poems to find the messages related to the varying attitudes about how and why people join the military. Vocabulary exercises and journal entries supported this learning. The novel will be a fast read as we will be moving into the second world war next month.
Theme:
Our Epsilon Theme students jumped right back in the trenches this week,,,literally! As we embark on our new year and new theme topic of the quarter, the students simulated life in the trenches of World War 1. As they sat jammed into our makeshift trenches, they read quotes, watched videos and documented the experience in their journals. They realized how boring, uncomfortable, and dangerous these trenches were to the soldiers of Europe. Groups were then formed and students created their first mini–project. They took the descriptions and experiences of the trenches and created Sensory poems that documented what they heard, saw, smelled, felt, and tasted during their time at war. They built boxes depicting an aspect of life in the trenches. The level of teamwork and creativity was unmatched with the Epsilon group this week. It was a great start to our theme of the World Wars.
Epsilon students started their new novels in the Humanities class. The tale of Warhorse follows a story from World War One, part of our new Theme for the quarter. The reading began with vocabulary documentation in the first reading assignment as students practiced the skill of using dictionaries to find information about unfamiliar words.
At top, Humanities students listen to patriotic music from World War I. Above, Students write down experiences while simulating military life in the trenches of Europe.
At top, it was life in the trenches as students crammed into the makeshift walls. Above,students construct 3D models of the trenches along with a creative writing project outlining the sensory experiences of the soldiers.
